Life in quiet St. Mary’s County isn’t quite what it seems . . .

For suburban newspaper editor Gabby de Sales, life is all about the headline. Devoted to her readers in Maryland and without much more to call her own, Gabby never thought she was restless — until a new job opportunity opens up. She’s excited about the chance to work on a major military base and get out of hard news, but her new position comes with some caveats. And require very different skills than those listed on her resume.

First, full disclosure: CB Lovejoy is a personal friend and coworker. Considering we both work at, ahem, suburban newspapers, let’s just say I related quite well to Lovejoy’s take on local politics, satisfying the masses and finding balance. Working at a community-based newspaper, known in our area as simply “The Paper” (of record, you see), you can’t escape the caveats of being a writer/journalist in the same area you call home. It can be tricky business.

And that’s just what Gabby de Sales discovers. In quick and sure-footed prose, Lovejoy introduces us to a heroine who has enough smarts to take care of herself in most situations — but can’t possibly predict the chain of events that will change her life. When Gabby accepts a public relations post at a large military base, she’s given more than press releases to tackle. Training for a top-secret task requires every bit of strength and savvy she possesses.

Fatal Mistake is a fast thriller of a novel that takes us down a tunnel of deceit and allows us to emerge out the other side. We know Gabby’s life is about to get very complicated — but at points I felt it took too long to get to the action. I was antsy waiting for The Big Moment to happen, you know? I knew things were going to get dicey and felt nervous as we counted down to the chaos. Before we got there, though, the scenes leading up to Gabby’s departure from the paper and arrival on base were some of my favorite ones. Her gentle ribbing of newsroom dynamics and office politics rang true for me.

Thrillers aren’t my usual fare, but there was much more to the story than chasing bad guys and learning to shoot. Readers looking for a quick-paced story with a battle-ready Everywoman for a main character will find plenty to enjoy in Fatal Mistake. I enjoyed getting to know Gabby and rooted for her to come out the other side. At less than 150 pages, it can be easily read in an afternoon — and you probably won’t want to stop once you’ve started. I know I didn’t.

4 out of 5!

ISBN: 1467948055 ♥ LibraryThing ♥ Amazon ♥ Author Website
Review copy provided by author in exchange for my honest review